It has seemed a little odd not to be sketching for the last 11 days, and this evening after dinner I thought it would be relaxing to get out the digital drawing pad and do a little painting. So while I won’t be making a picture every day, there’s no reason not to post a […]
Tagged art on art, landscape, nature, oil, pastelDay three hundred and fifty-seven: There were several little prints by William Blake (English, 1757-1827) in the study room today. One nocturnal landscape caught my eye in particular, both for the gnarly tree and the crescent moon wrapped around a black circle. When I began to imitate the print, I started sketching with black, but quickly […]
Tagged blake, landscape, nocturne, oil, pastelDay three hundred and fifty-five: For those who have studied Surrealist photography, this image may be familiar. It’s a photograph made around 1930 by Man Ray of the movement’s leader André Breton. I’ve known about it for several years now, and have always found it strange and delightful. When I started sketching it this evening, […]
Tagged abstract, art on art, face, oil, pastelDay three hundred and fifty-four: Tonight’s sketch is loosely based on a floating figure in a print made by William Blake around 1800. I believe it was an early white line etching, although I don’t know many details about how it was made or the exact process. When I briefly looked at an impression the […]
Tagged art on art, figure studyDay three hundred and forty-eight: Today’s sketch of an eagle is based on a detail from an early 16th-century etching by Daniel Hopfer. I’d write more, but I got a late start because I attended my first book arts class after work! 2011 has been the year of the sketch, and it’s looking like 2012 […]
Tagged animal, pencilDay three hundred and forty-four: I am repeatedly amazed when I make sketches after old masters. Their technique and skill is unbelievable. This detail is based on an etching by an unknown artist who was copying a print by Daniel Hopfer. I like the way my drawing ended up, with its peculiar, modern patterns and […]
Tagged face, pencilDay three hundred and forty-one: I spent some time this afternoon browsing through boxes of prints by anonymous artists from the 15th and 16th centuries. There were many interesting sheets, both peculiar and lovely, and largely forgotten. My sketch this evening is based on a detail from one striking 16th-century Italian engraving of Christ healing […]
Tagged art on art, pencilDay three hundred and thirty-six: Ever since I studied 16th-century Italian woodcuts intensely about a year ago, I’ve been enchanted by the bark-crusted trunks of twisting trees and stumps. I have a theory that every great artist has made one or two during the course of their career. This evening I visited the Pennsylvania Academy […]
Tagged landscape, nature, pen and ink, woodcutDay three hundred and twenty-two: Today I spent a couple of hours looking at small books made by the self taught artist, James Castle. This sketch imitates one of the figures that appears repeatedly on the tiny, brittle pages, and is often cloaked in a quilt-like pattern of checks and spots.
Tagged art on art, figure study, oil, pastel, watercolorDay three hundred and twenty-one: This afternoon I had the pleasure of spending a little time with an expert on Japanese prints who was visiting from Washington D.C. We looked at an example of “Red Fuji” in the PMA’s collection, which turns out to be a very fine, early impression of the classic color woodcut […]
Tagged art on art, landscape, nature, woodcut